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Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

It's been widely reported that Brandon Bass has been looking for more playing time.

And his reasonable contract coupled with his skill for the limited playing time he receives has made him a rumored trade chip.

Add in some good play this preseason to his name, and Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel is wondering if the time is ripe for the Magic to trade Bass.

"The way he's played lately, he might get his wish -- and my guess is the Magic are only waiting for the right deal to come along," he wrote. "Bass is showcasing his talents for other teams, such as the Indiana Pacers, who need power-forward help. Trouble is, the Pacers want to give up Dahntay Jones or Solomon Jones. I can't imagine the Magic being interested, unless the Pacers give up a first-round pick."

Of course, it's also possible the Magic could wait until the trade deadline if they decide it's in their best interest to move Bass. Patience could see other teams emerging with a need for a PF due to injuries and the like, and the Magic could get something better in return depending on the team.

ESPN's John Hollinger

Bass one of the best trade pieces in the league

"Bass played reasonably well when he got chances, but I've been told that he fell out of favor because he couldn't remember the plays. Really? If that's true, it makes it all the more amazing that he shot 51.1 percent and scored 17.9 points per 40 minutes last season. Bass finished 2009-10 with a PER (16.54) well above the league average, but Orlando's frontcourt was so deep that he hardly played. This, and his reasonable contract, make him one of the more tantalizing pieces of trade bait in the league. The Magic may choose to keep him around for insurance, but if he ever gets to a situation where he can play 30 minutes a night, he'll put up some numbers."

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

I would think that Orlando would try to change philosophies and actually try to start Bass so they have two rebounders.

Then use Rashard at the three, Vince at the two, and Jameer at the one.

They may not be better like that during the regular season, but in the playoffs they'd be alot better off without Barnes averaging four points (yes I know he's gone, but he's essentially the same player as QRich), Carter averaging five points, Rashard averaging 5 points and so on..

I still don't understand why they could possibly let Hedo go. They could have traded for VC and resigned Hedo instead of resigning Gortat and signing Barnes.

Then they'd have this lineup:

Jameer
Carter
Hedo
Rashard
Dwight Howard

Of course I'd rather have Bass in at power forward and move whoever to the 6th man role, probably Carter to do a Jamal Crawford thing, but that wouldn't happen.

Or I'm crazy enough to trade Jameer and VC to Washington for Gilbert and a first or something. You get an insanely good offensive point with Gil, plus the likes of Kyrie Irving or Harrison Barnes if you strike gold. (The reason Washington does it is because they can finally rebuild) Then you have depending if you want to go small or not:

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

Yeah, he didn't get playing time because he couldn't learn the team's defensive principles and was often out of position. He was also rebounding the ball very poorly. SVG had good reasons to not play him much.

He's a good role-player though. Much better than his last season would suggest.

I'd also like to see Orlando trying a more grindout, traditional, style, with Rashard at the 3. See how it works out. I think they're deep enough at the wing with Carter+Pietrus+Richardson+Redick to play Lewis at the 4 if they wish so, but I'd like to see how a big frontcourt with Howard+Gortat/Anderson/Bass+Lewis produces after gelling for awhile. They were terrific defensively and on the boards when Howard+Gortat played together last season.

So far, so good (btw, I read somewhere Orlando has won 19 consecutive pre-season games or so... that's an amazing stat).

Hedo was asking for a very large contract. Plus GMs have budgetary restraints to deal with, Otis Smith needed to opt one way or the other, I don't think there's a way he could have kept both Carter and Hedo in the payroll.

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Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

Followed by him signing Gortat, Bass (which is a good pickup in my book, but still), Barnes, Duhon, and overpaying for JJ Reddick.

Seriously, why couldn't he draft Lance Stephenson at 29 to be the backup point to save $20 mil, or draft Jerome Jordan or Hassan Whiteside to backup the center spot to save $20-$25 million. Then keep Hedo and trade Vince Carter and Jameer Nelson for a good point guard like Baron Davis or Gilbert Arenas (realistically). Possibly even Chris Paul.

Otis used the "we need more players here and now" thing last year and it backfired as he has no room for moves and he's way way way over the tax.

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

He could have never signed Gortat, Bass, and Barnes to make room for Hedo.

That would left him with too many holes in the frontcourt. Howard+Lewis+Ryan Anderson? That's too thin and lacks beef. How could he get over Boston and LA with that?

Plus, Carter declined quite a bit as a pick'n'roll ball-handler last season. That was unexpected and made Hedo's absence more difficult to overcome. On the other hand, I'm not sure that a Nelson+Carter+Hedo backcourt would function too well. I dont' think there'd be enough ball to maximize their potential + I think the defense would be suspect (not that it was any better with Barnes, but it should improve with Q Richardson).

Anyway, Gortat is under a club-friendly contract and Bass' contract isn't that bad either. I bet they could flip them into Hedo if Otis wished so.

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Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

Brandon Rush would be a great fit on the Magic. I'd offer Rush and Solomon Jones in a heartbeat for Bass. Of course, Dahntay would be a great addition too. It seems to me like the Magic would be interested in either considering their options at shooting guard are somewhat limited.

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

Brandon Rush would be a great fit on the Magic. I'd offer Rush and Solomon Jones in a heartbeat for Bass. Of course, Dahntay would be a great addition too. It seems to me like the Magic would be interested in either considering their options at shooting guard are somewhat limited.

Vince Carter, JJ Redick, Quentin Richardson, Mikael Pietrus.

I wouldn't say limited exactly. I think they could use another defensive wing with the loss of Matt Barnes and the fact that they like to use Rashard Lewis at the PF spot, but if you put Bass at PF, and move Lewis to SF they have solid depth at wing.

They really like Ryan Anderson at PF for his shooting/stretching the floor ability as well.

I still think Bass would be a nice addition. Not sure where he would fit in minutes wise with McRoberts and Hansbrough, but that's a problem I'm willing to take on

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

I don't see the Magic trading him. I think it's just speculation about his playing time.

He'll get playing time with the Magic this year

iv'e watch every magic pre-season game they are blowing everyone out. But i see Ryan Anderson outplaying him IDK who will get thoes mintues. But Ryan Anderson is looking really good for them. They both had really good games 2nite

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

actually, I just checked the Heat's schedule, and they play the Magic on the 22nd and 29th of this month, so we could see a Heat regular season loss very early (about game 3 of their season if not sooner).

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

Brandon Rush would be a great fit on the Magic. I'd offer Rush and Solomon Jones in a heartbeat for Bass. Of course, Dahntay would be a great addition too. It seems to me like the Magic would be interested in either considering their options at shooting guard are somewhat limited.

I'd think that if we gave them Rush and Solo, their only option would be to trade us Mikael Pietrus. Throw in Daniel Orton or a 2nd round pick to make us happy because I believe that Pietrus has a 2 year contract so... yeah.

If we got a 2nd round pick I'd very seriously consider it. Especially if the trade was Dahntay, Solo, and Rush for Pietrus, Orton, and a 2nd. We still get a 2 for 1 deal plus Daniel Orton who could be league fodder or really come around in the next two years (remember what everyone thought of BJ Mullens?), as well as a 2nd round pick and a serviceable backup shooting guard/small forward who can defend and can is basically a more experienced version of Brandon Rush.

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

I'd think that if we gave them Rush and Solo, their only option would be to trade us Mikael Pietrus. Throw in Daniel Orton or a 2nd round pick to make us happy because I believe that Pietrus has a 2 year contract so... yeah.

If we got a 2nd round pick I'd very seriously consider it. Especially if the trade was Dahntay, Solo, and Rush for Pietrus, Orton, and a 2nd. We still get a 2 for 1 deal plus Daniel Orton who could be league fodder or really come around in the next two years (remember what everyone thought of BJ Mullens?), as well as a 2nd round pick and a serviceable backup shooting guard/small forward who can defend and can is basically a more experienced version of Brandon Rush.

Re: Bass Trade Prospects: Pacers mentioned(ESPN Insider)

I feel the same way about making a Brandon Bass deal as I do about making a Jason Thompson deal.

It's trying to throw quantity at a position where we need quality.

Neither player is a big enough upgrade over what we currently have to warrant such action.

Honestly, I think Thompson would be a very significant upgrade over Tyler, who we aren't sure will be able to stay healthy, and Josh, who is really as unproven as any other young big in the league that's looking at getting good minutes this season.

Compare the three players in the most significant (basic) statistical categories from last season:

Thompson:31.3 mpg, 47% fg, 12.5 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.0 bpg

McRoberts: 12.5 mpg, 52% fg, 4.3 ppg, 3.0 ppg, 1.0 apg, 0.4 bpg

Hansbrough: 17.5 mpg, 36% fg, 8.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.0 apg, 0.3 bpg

Now I agree that you can't take those numbers in a vacuum and assume that McBob and Hans won't be more productive given more minutes, but I also don't think you can assume double or triple the minutes means double or triple the production. I'd rather go with a proven guy who has performed well while playing two positions (and losing a lot of touches when Carl Landry came to town). If we got Thompson, not only would he likely average at least 10 and 8, but he'd also be able to serve as Roy's primary backup, particularly when the opponent goes small and/or tries to make it a track meet.

My ideal trade acquision as our PF of the future would be Kevin Love, but I don't think he's at all attainable, whereas Thompson seems like the odd man out. If we could send a perimeter player than they can use (i.e. Rush or Dahntay) plus a first-rounder, they get a nice package for a player they might not really have in their future plans and we get our guy.

As Michael Scott would say, "I want to hear some great ideas from you that are just as good as mine."